Jamie Turpin

To start off, my interviewee lives in Denver, Colorado. So, last week I reached out to Jennie Kinsler to ask her personally over the phone to see if she had availability and was willing to partake in an interview that was in relation to my thesis. She concurred so we set up a date for the following week, which actually ended up being yesterday, Wednesday February 20.

On Monday, February 18, I finalized my thesis questions and emailed Jennie a copy of the questions so she could prepare for them mentally and not be put on the spot when we met later on in the week. Jennie and I planned to converse on Wednesday evening. I called her and before beginning the interview, I made sure she had open availability to begin the interview. (I did this to show respect of her time and to make sure she did not get caught up in another project or such.) Moving on with the beginning the interview, I spoke of the question and in return she responded and yet we were able to have dialogue on the subject matter, which allowed us to expand some areas of the questions a little further. One question at the end of the list, she did note for further clarity on it to make sure she read it clearly. In return, I was able to expand the intent of the question, which in return led to further discussions. Overall, the interview flow and meeting went rather smooth. I will note, the interview questions did cater to Jennie specifically since I was aware she was business owner and her background in design.

Side note: As a reflection on the questions for the interview, they were phrased in a manner that weren’t leading or declarative of my own opinion about the subject. I always let Jennie lead and provide her intent before I chimed in asking for further lucidity.

REFLECTION ON THE PRIMARY SOURCE HUNT

To begin, I started my approach for the primary source hunt by reaching out to the Savannah College of Art & Design’s online librarian. I chatted live with the librarian and stated I needed help locating resources for, “Henri Matisse, early exhibition of Modernist art in New York City, 1911.” In return the scad_ref noted: “If you’re looking for information on the specific exhibition, you may have more luck with articles in our databases.” So I provided better clarification on what I needed help with. In closing the conversation with the online librarian, she noted, “I would try searching the JSTOR database. It has articles from a wide variety of sources that are all searchable in one place. To access the database, start from the library homepage (http://library.scad.edu). From there, hover your mouse over “Article & Image Databases” and click “Browse Databases by Title.” Find JSTOR in the list, and click on it to open a new window for the database.”

The advice I would offer my peers about locating primary source documents; perhaps don’t start with the local college/university but branch out to the public libraries such as Library of Congress or New York Times Archive. Places that invest in providing accurate information for the public to utilize and information that is beneficial for the users to learn from.

During my hunt, I became very intrigued with the old New York tribune clippings on Henri Matisse. It’s absolutely amazing on the mint condition the newspaper articles are in, the legibility and yet the intent was strongly distinguished. The Library of Congress, I’ve used in the past for research but yet was new to experiencing the Chronicling America – Historic American Newspapers.

The Structure of Design Revolutions:
Kuhnian Paradigm Shifts in Creative Problem Solving

In the article, “The Structure of Design Revolutions: Kuhnian Paradigm Shifts in Creative Problem Solving” (2010) Nathan Crilly denotes the parallels between the creative design progress and scientific discovery.

Crilly organizes the thesis into four sections. He began by introducing the creative design progress and it’s foundation. Which reflects him to mention Kuhn’s account on the structure of scientific revolution along with his influence on the paradigm shifts. In return, this leads Crilly to exemplify the connection between scientific discoveries and creative design along with its support for the structure of the creative design progress and it’s nine propositions. Which concludes, him mirroring upon his initial argument.

Crilly’s intent is to convey the structure of scientific discovery and creative design progress in order to aid reflective practice.

Nathan Crilly’s approach for articulating his argument concerning scientific discovery mirroring activities of creative design along with the support of the creative design progress and the nine propositions was delivered to the audience in an inclusive manner that allowed them to visually form the structure in their minds while connecting with the language.

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Resources

Crilly, Nathan. “The Structure of Design Revolutions: Kuhnian Paradigm Shifts in Creative Problem Solving.” The MIT Press. www.jstor.org.library.scad.edu/stable/20627842 (accessed January 27, 2013).

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Additional Resources

d’Anjou, Philippe. “Beyond Duty and Virtue in Design Ethics.” The MIT Press. http://www.jstor.org.library.scad.edu/stable/20627845
(accessed January 26, 2013).

Maeda, John. “John Maeda: How art, technology and design inform creative leaders | Video on TED.com.” TED: Ideas worth spreading. http://on.ted.com/Maeda (accessed January 26, 2013).

Van Der Merwe, Johann. “The Magic of Three.” Academia. http://www.academia.edu/249499/The_magic_of_three
(accessed January 27, 2013).

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As I mentioned in prior posts, that I’ve taking a couple of steps backwards to dig deeper into my thesis idea. After many hours at the Kansas City Public Library, phone calls with professors, bookmarking more articles, reading more notes, I’ve come to these three ideas for my elevator speech.

Thesis Topic 1
I believe the universality of design principles were articulated within our discipline as specific bubbles that created a narrow, specialized perspective on design. As crossover design disciplines emerge; multidisciplinary designers form, universal perspectives are expressed and environments exemplify new design behaviors within a space. My thesis will explore the relationships between design education, crossover design and how behavioral design advocates the transformation of the space.

Thesis Topic 2
My thesis will explore the relationships between design education, crossover design and how behavioral design advocates the transformation of the space. Multidisciplinary designers approach form, function and environmental as a universal perspective that relies on the knowledge of design education with broader concepts and design fundamentals. I believe that all design environments run parallel to the different disciplines that allows the end user to connect and experience design in an unexpected manner.

Thesis Topic 3
I believe the universality of design principles were articulated within our discipline as specific bubbles that created a narrow, specialized perspective on design. However, today as crossover design disciplines emerge; multidisciplinary designers and universal perspectives are formed which alter the design behavior within a space. My thesis will reflect upon how multidisciplinary design and universal design process can transform attitudes and behaviors as they relate to the form, function and visual message of a space.

Elevator Pitch – Round One

Message One
I believe intertwining graphic design and interior architecture alters the end results of a visual message in an environment. Therefore, I want the end user to understand and experience how the form and functionality of design alters the design behavior in a space. My thesis will communicate how constructing the visual form transforms the message.

Message Two
I believe intertwining graphic design and interior architecture alters the end results of a visual message in an environment. Therefore I want people to understand and experience how altering the form of 2D design changes the functionality of the design behavior in a living space. My thesis will reflect on the relationships of form, meaning and behavior.

To start off, my name is Jamie Turpin and today I live in Kansas City, Missouri but that could always change tomorrow.

In the fall of 2010, I began the MA program while living in St. Louis, Missouri. The very next quarter of the MA program, I received a career opportunity back in Kansas City. So I packed my weekly bag and lived in 2 cities for 9 months – while working as a full time designer, going to school full time and trying to live everything in between. (Luckily, my significant other cooked my meals and did my laundry.)

At the end of 2011, I began contemplating about the MFA program at SCAD while we planned to stay put at our downtown Kansas City loft for donkey’s years.

In 2012, I kept in focus with completing the MA degree during the summer term while packing up our downtown loft to move into our new lakefront house. During the fall of 2012, I received my acceptance letter into the MFA program at SCAD. At the end of 2012, I said good-bye to my creative coworkers while I tightened up my design backpack of 10 years to confidently leap into the entrepreneur world of freelance.

Looking at my year of 2013; I feel very fortunate to have received a contract with the Kansas City Art Institute to teach part time, established a year planned out of freelance work to survive on, be part of SCAD once again and last ready for everything in between.

Side Note: My prior life was spent in architecture firms in Dallas, Texas and Kansas City, Missouri – doing retail renovations and corporate new construction. I graduated in 2002 from Kansas State University with a 5-year degree in Interior Architecture. I’ve lived in Manhattan, Kansas; Geelong, Victoria, Australia; Dallas, Texas; Kansas City, Missouri; St. Louis, Missouri; and last back to Kansas City, Missouri. I’ve discovered along my journey that I am not a corporate person but support more of the Ma/Pa shops/boutiques, enjoy the laid back cities and prefer local farmers markets to any mass/produced retail box. Growing up as a farmers daughter; my father taught me to support specific values by having the mindset of honesty, support the locals, always work hard and to never give up…today this has helped me reached where I want to be…

Along Great Ocean Road in Australia